Wait. Isn’t that what we’re SUPPOSED to do? Write about ourselves / flaunt our egos? Reading stuff from people in other cultures or time periods (Josephine lived from 1828-1906) is confusing!
Anyway, I hope this provides clarity for you!
You’re welcome!
Good luck!
Thanks for liking me! I like you too! Let’s journey together!
It’s easier than you think to be exceptional, friend!
It’s EASY to be exceptional!
Proof:
I got a spelling award every week in Grade 3, just by losing a bit of my mental health by staying inside every night studying spelling words, while other kids had fun playing neighborhood games!
Got time to become a little less frantic, spinning, busy (frankly: nuts), friend?
So, I’ve been feeling like I am spinning in ever smaller circles, about to be sucked down the drain of life, lately.
I woke to this startling reality recently in my otherwise perfect life (Of course, my life is perfect! Hello! I write and provide “advice1” online, after all!).
Yes, this new mat WAS installed soon after I purchased a membership there, but that is OBVIOUSLY a coincidence, okay! I can’t believe you think there’s any relationship between these two dissociated events! Yes, this article is partially about having a big ego, AND about having a big ego at the gym.
Join people in over fifty countries who read this to gain valuable life wisdom! (Or maybe they’re just laughing at me? . . . Whatever!)
YES! It IS the kind of ego that looks down on others, but NOT RIGHT AWAY. So, give me the benefit of the doubt, people!
For those of you who haven’t slammed your laptop closed yet, let’s dive into four helpful tips from today’s article.
But first, here is an astonishing fact:
People, it’s not that hard to go to the gym.
Really. I just went there. It was, like, 20 minutes of work in a half-hour class, and the rest was stretching and stuff.
20 minutes in a day with 1,440 minutes. That’s 0.01% of your day1. Come on, people!
The only reason why going to the gym is so hard is that you do too much!
And why do you do too much? Well, it’s probably because, like me, you’re a smidgen self-conscious2when you lift tiny weights, and everyone else has medium (or even large) weights. But don’t get rid of that ego, friend! No! Just be like me and use your unhealthy pride to your own advantage!
What do I mean?
The thing with me is that I know that I’m prideful3. And so, then if I can talk about having an exceptional ego, then it doesn’t control me. And I can realize that my big ego is trying to stop me from going to the gym.
And then I can step on that ego and say, “No! You’re not stopping me from going to the gym! I’m going to go even if I look like a complete loser!” And then I can end up going to the gym.
And then I can be more prideful than others because I’m stronger than others after several months, so I’m actually more prideful in the end.
(2) Remember that THE POINT of being at the gym is to look down on others, but LATER! Keep this in the back of your mind! Let your unhealthy ego fuel you into healthy habits!
Stop being prideful NOW so you can be more prideful later when it really matters!
(3) Don’t worry about lifting heavy weights or doing so much when you’re there! That part is overrated anyway, in my experience!
What you DO at the gym doesn’t actually matter!
(4) And don’t worry about looking like an idiot when you’re there! Yes, you’re not going to be very strong. Get over it! Of course, you’re not very strong! People there have done a lot more work than you. It’s like you’re sitting next to a concert pianist, and you’re sitting there next to them, learning the scales on the piano and wondering why you’re not that good.
Well, yes, you’re not that good, but you’ll get better every time you go, right?
3 (Yes, okay! In unhealthy ways, too! Fine! I admit it!)
4 You can’t expect EVERYONE to agree with my extraordinarily helpful advice, anyway -And so there may not be quite as many free quotes that AI can find that line up EXACTLY with my main point.
With an uncharacteristic lack of self-knowledge, I suddenly realized I was still in pajamas, curlers in my straight hair, that day as I yelled at my homeschooled kids to get up, get dressed, and get to their work!
The only problem was that I hadn’t done any of those things yet, either.
I had a moment where I thought, “Wow! EVEN I didn’t know that! I’d better write that down!”
You see, I’ve been attending church for a LONG time, so there isn’t much I don’t already know!
Join people in over fifty countries who read this to gain valuable life wisdom! (Or maybe they’re just laughing at me? . . . Whatever!)
Actually, the full truth is that there are many things I ONCE knew but then forgot, and had to be taught again, which is slightly different (technically speaking). And in fact, this is where most of my “new” information seems to come from as I’ve gotten a bit older.
For example, when I was a teenager, I proudly announced, “God, I surrender all that I have to You!”
A couple of decades later, I confessed to a mentor that I was having trouble surrendering everything to God. “It’s a lot easier to give God everything when you don’t have anything to give,” was her unperturbed quip. (Her comment was slightly insensitive, don’t you think?)
But she was older than me, so she had a lot more experience with knowing stuff, not applying it, forgetting it, and then trying to relearn it again.
And the same thing happened in church recently. Of course, I know ALL that stuff! But then the speaker that day asked us what it seemed God was nudging us to do, before our immediate response to God of: “Nah!”
That speaker then insulted me by insinuating that fear holds us back from stepping into the adventure Jesus leads us on.
Please! But after I got mad at that speaker, I later realized he was right. (Don’t tell my husband. That’s our most consistent “Marriage Pattern” too, but I prefer not to admit the latter half of that first sentence, so our stable “Power Balance” doesn’t get disrupted.)
The speaker then described the following fears that often hold us back from spiritual authenticity:
1. Fear of Rejection – People may laugh at or ignore me!
Author’s Spiritual Reflection And Wisdom: Ha! I would never be afraid of that! I was voted the best dressed in my red-neck high school, after all! I obviously have style and a certain “coolness” which I take GREAT PAINS and often feel compelled (for some reason?) to humbly hint at when I am with others!
2. Fear of Inadequacy – I might not know enough or be anointed enough!
Author’s Spiritual Reflection And Wisdom: I feel very spiritual and EVEN connected to God in the morning after I pray! However, if my kids or anyone else shows up in my life, then I always seem to be yelling at them against my (spiritual) will! That proves that it’s OTHERS, not ME, that make me behave badly.
I would be a great Christian if it wasn’t for all the people.
3. Fear of Hostility – People could oppose me or harm me!
Author’s Spiritual Reflection And Wisdom: Yes! For example, I didn’t tell you my exact address. (Besides the fact that you don’t care) I heard there was a mean person on the internet once! And also, why DO more Christians feel “called” to Hawaii more often than to the Democratic Republic of Congo? Well, we won’t know the answers to ALL of life’s riddles!
4. Fear of Failure – What if no one responds?
Author’s Spiritual Reflection And Wisdom: Yes! The dreaded fate of not many “Likes” as we project our egos on the internet! Terrifying! Good thing that I know that “I am deeply loved exactly as I am, eternally, by God’s grace.” Actually, I’m trying to relearn (or perhaps to learn?) this truth, which has been helping me recently to drastically cut back on self-medication through excess chocolate consumption at one sitting, but that is another story for another time.
Hey! I can’t share ALL my wisdom at once! As mentioned at the beginning of this article, I’ve been going to church a LONG TIME, so OBVIOUSLY I know a lot of stuff!
You’re welcome!
Good luck!
As the song below asks, “Why are you so afraid to fail?” can you (Just for a moment, and not aloud if that’s impossible) admit to God that fear MAY just be holding you back a teensy bit, too, friend? And then, as she sings, “Why are you so afraid to lose if all the love you ever dreamed of already belongs to you?” what do you sense God whispering to your heart?
He’s super annoying because he went wherever God seemed to nudge him, even to the Democratic Republic of Congo (Who goes THERE for a holiday?)! “You did WHAT?” I asked. They spent 20 years helping people through war, genocide and guerrilla takeovers.
Join people in over fifty countries who read this to gain valuable life wisdom! (Or maybe they’re just laughing at me? . . . Whatever!)
She is like that, too. “You did WHAT?”, I asked. I mean, just because I don’t hug every homeless guy I pass on the street and cry over them, doesn’t mean I’m not a caring person, too!
I mean, I know this stuff! – That we’re supposed to think of others, etc., etc.
Of course, I know that! I’ve sat in the same pew every week for 30 years! I mean, of course, I know what it means to be a real Christian! So when he (the guy in the first paragraph) said the following, of course, I already knew that stuff, too!
He asked us if we sensed that God was perhaps nudging us to do or say something, or to take action (i.e., kindness?) in some way.
“Nah,” I immediately thought.
Then I remembered. In the summer, I sent out this article as I thought perhaps, there was a nudge from Holy Spirit to open a forum so that we (You and I – the reader! Yes! I AM pointing my finger RIGHT through this article at you!) could get to know each other better and maybe share a coffee and some wisdom.1
“And so, if God is nudging you to begin something, why haven’t you done it yet?” was his (annoying) next question.
He said it’s because of fear. The NERVE! Well, we’ll talk about fear next time, because I once struggled with a twinge of fear and learned something to help me overcome it (a bit!), but that’s not for today.2
For today, THE POINT of this article is to announce that we will be hosting prayer times approximately twice monthly to connect and get to know each other.
And then, recently, instead of simply loudly blaring my thoughts to the world like I usually do as I write online, I decided to learn a bit more about YOU, the reader. I wanted to read (some) of your writing, from those of you who write, and (who knew?) you are actually very cool! All of you! It would be great to have tea and to share a prayer.
On the other end of the fear, God is there, ready to catch us when we fall.6
God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we’re free of worry . . . There is no room in love for fear.
As the song below sings, “I’ve been afraid” or “You’re bigger than all my problems,” consider asking God if He may be nudging you to step outside your fear and to take action, too. What do you sense in your heart (JUST before you immediately say, “NAH!”)? Jesus, help us tangibly experience more of Your love, so we can finally step out of fear, we pray.
Thanks for liking me! I like you too! – Proven HERE, HERE, and HERE! Let’s journey together!
Photo Credit – Looks (A Bit) Like Me! (In Coolness, I Mean) by JUSTIN BUISSON on Unsplash
1 NO! I don’t need any wisdom! I’M the one sharing wisdom here, remember? This is a one-way street! And what did you say? Humility is overrated, especially when we’re at church, in my experience!
2 Did you notice that I am doing something SCARY by conquering my fear of rejection and inadequacy (We’ll talk about that another time) by hosting an online group where I MAY (gulp!) even get IGNORED -worst of all fates? Which is basically the same as conquering fear to help people through civil war in the Congo (see first paragraph), but who’s comparing? I hope my life inspires you, too! You’re welcome! Good luck!
We are serving up some previously published articles for you to feast on this week, while our family is on spring break.1
Goodbye, winter!
Hello, flowers in Victoria, Canada! Enjoy some of this site’s top articles from around this time last year.2 And may these articles help you stride confidently through life!
I was pushing my shopping cart in the grocery store. I was in a hurry (Of course!) and pushing more on one side because the thing kept veering off to one side as I walked, trying to smash into every aisle. “I. Only. Have. To. Get. A. Few. More. Items,” I grunted begrudgingly, pushing hard with both hands on one side of the cart.
I don’t want you to go through life like this. I thought I sensed God whispering in my heart.
Well, there was a bit more as she explained it to me. The plant was in winter. All that could be seen were a few sticks for branches poking above the ground.
Join people in over fifty countries who read this to gain valuable life wisdom! (Or maybe they’re just laughing at me? . . . Whatever!)
Sounded like my life in that moment.
“But spring is coming,” she encouraged me.
I picked up my discouragement and continued walking on the ill-trodden path that God seemed to be leading me down, wondering if, sometime in the future, there would be life above the snow.
The word “establish” kept coming to my mind as I prayed. What needed to be established? Holy Spirit also seemed to be nudging me to write. Now, I had always written copiously in journals, but I would never think of sharing my written thoughts with others!
“Who would read such neurotic pretensions?” I asked myself. Certainly not me! I looked at my piles of completed journals, all of them unopened and unread, even by me.
Keep writing, God seemed to encourage me.
The first time I sat at my desk and tried to write something I intended to publish, it was like the seat of my office chair was on fire – It was so uncomfortable. I couldn’t sit there! Only a pompous, inflated prig would would presume she had something to say to another!
But it’s essential to fit in with others, so, of course, I pretended1 to be a pretentious know-it-all with an inflated ego so I would have something to write about!
And then I pressed publish.
The simple reality is that if you ever want to do anything significant for the Kingdom, you will have to overcome fear and internal resistance. If could be fear of the unknown, fear of what others will think2, fear of harm or injury3, fear of failure, fear that you’re not ready or equipped for the task. There is ALWAYS fear.
And so, to return to the start of this article, “A winter season,” she had suggested that day.
“Establishing,” God had seemed to be whispering in my prayers. Establishing a habit of pressing “Publish” and letting my words be carried off on the wind. I was learning not to care what others thought about the things that deeply mattered to me.
I was learning to listen to His voice and to dance in joy with Him.
And when the amaryllis, the lilac, and the peony bloomed that spring after a decade or more of relative death, I looked back in awe at where He has been leading me.
And he reminds us that spring, the season of blooming and life, always follows winter, as we rest in Him.
Is this an establishing season for you, friend? May your roots grow deep as you trust that “if you’re not done working, God, I’m not done waiting,” as the song below sings. As the song below also sings, “Though the winter is long, even richer, the harvest it brings,” after a moment of silent reflection and thanksgiving, consider asking God, “What new thing are you trying to water in this season, God, and how can I best be obedient to Your gentle nudge in a new direction?
Oh, and the question is not so much, “Where will you go?” or “What will you do?” but “Who will you become?”
And so, what is a simple habit to find our identity? We obey His promptings from our prayer times. Then we wait and trust that life sprouts.
Because spring always comes with new life.
Just as rain and snow descend from the skies and don’t go back until they’ve watered the earth, doing their work of making things grow and blossom, producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry, so will the words that come out of my mouth not come back empty-handed. They’ll do the work I sent them to do, they’ll complete the assignment I gave them.
3 I definitely fear that, but thankfully, I am pretty safe at home writing on my computer in my safe little town in Canada with all the doors and windows locked! (Just in case.)
Restoring Life 